Roland has released new drums and FX for its innovative DJ controllers

The remix features on its sequencer-DJ kit get an upgrade

Olivia Mastin

14 February 2018

Firmware updates for Roland’s DJ-808, 505 and 202 controllers have now been rolled, available on the classic electronic equipment brand’s website.

First launched in 2016, these DJ controllers feature Roland’s signature machines (built-in), as well as low-latency jogwheels and four mixing decks. It marks 11 years now since all-in-one digital DJ controllers first came onto the scene.

At the top of the range, this new update gives the DJ-808 controller new microphone reverb settings, four new channel effects, a few more functions for the TR-S on-board sequencer. The best of these functions may well be the Nudge, which allows you to make small changes to the tempo of beats made on the controller’s sequencer, as you’re playing, making it much easier to beatmatch with another song. These changes bring the controller’s live remixing capabilities up to a higher standard.

As well as the 808, the mid-tier DJ-505 gets three new master effects to tweak live, and each model gets a new collection of drum sounds, including the entry level DJ-202, all from Roland’s time-honoured TR-S library.